Rodolfo's proposal for a project that may or may not be made

Original

Your Presence Was Cancelled is an ongoing project that I would like to show at the EYE Research Labs next February. The project consists of creating a moving image, based on a still photograph - a kind of selfie I took last May on the train - and drawing a narrative around it.

I want to make it because, first of all, I think it will help me understand and process what happened at that moment, or rather, that day. It also seems to me to be a good opportunity to work with archive material and create a narrative that is honest and, at the same time, exciting and surprising about it. Finally, it seems like a great opportunity to get out of my comfort zone (which mostly involves creating still images), and generate something new from an artistic/technical point of view, in which I work with moving images and sound.

There are, from the outset, three components of the project that I have to work on: the image, the text and the sound - the last two of which may, or may not, be linked to each other. In relation to the image, it seems important to me to start dismantling the photograph and create a notion of movement from it, through an editing process. I want it to be possible to browse/navigate through the image, as if it’s moving, like a train. With regards to the text, it seems important to me to understand what type of narrative I want to create and, above all, how I want to tell the story of this picture, whether I want it to be something merely descriptive, more personal or maybe both. And how do I want to communicate what I'm saying: whether through text or a voice over, which may or may not be mine. And this is strictly related to the issue of sound, because if there is a voice over, it seems important to me to understand whether I want to add other types of sound to the piece, be it music or sounds related to the space seen in the picture. It seems essential to me to bring together, throughout the entire process, all the components and understand how they work together, so that there is coherence between each and every part.

Tesse's questions

Your Presence Was Cancelled is an ongoing project that I would like to show at the EYE Research Labs next February. The project consists of creating a moving image, based on a still photograph - a kind of selfie I took last May on the train - and drawing a narrative around it. I want to make it because, first of all, I think it will help me understand and process what happened at that moment, or rather, that day. It also seems to me to be a good opportunity to work with archive material and create a narrative that is honest and, at the same time, exciting and surprising about it. Finally, it seems like a great opportunity to get out of my comfort zone (which mostly involves creating still images), and generate something new from an artistic/technical point of view, in which I work with moving images and sound. There are, from the outset, three components of the project that I have to work on: the image, the text and the sound - the last two of which may, or may not, be linked to each other. In relation to the image, it seems important to me to start dismantling the photograph and create a notion of movement from it, through an editing process. I want it to be possible to browse/navigate through the image, as if it’s moving, like a train. With regards to the text, it seems important to me to understand what type of narrative I want to create and, above all, how I want to tell the story of this picture, whether I want it to be something merely descriptive, more personal or maybe both. And how do I want to communicate what I'm saying: whether through text or a voice over, which may or may not be mine. And this is strictly related to the issue of sound, because if there is a voice over, it seems important to me to understand whether I want to add other types of sound to the piece, be it music or sounds related to the space seen in the picture. It seems essential to me to bring together, throughout the entire process, all the components and understand how they work together, so that there is coherence between each and every part.

Second Text

Your Presence Was Cancelled is an ongoing project that I would like to show at the EYE Research Labs next February. The project consists of creating a moving image, based on a still one - a selfie that I took last May on the train - and building a narrative around it.

I want to make it because, first of all, I think it will help me understand and process what happened at that moment, or rather, that day. I see it, as well, as a good chance to work with archive material and create a narrative around it. Finally, it seems like a great opportunity to get out of my comfort zone (which mostly involves creating still images), and generate something new from an artistic/technical point of view, in which I work with moving images and sound.

There are, from the outset, three components of the project that I have to work on: the image, the text and the sound - the last two of which may, or may not, be linked to each other. I have to start to dismantle the photograph and create a notion of movement from it, through zooming in/out and browse on the image. With regards to the text, I need to understand what type of narrative I want to create and, above all, how I want to tell the story of this picture, if I want it to be something merely descriptive, more personal or maybe both. And how do I want to communicate what I'm saying: whether through text or a voice over - which may or may not be mine. This choice is strictly related to the issue of sound, because if there is a voice over, I would need to realize if I want to add other types of sound to the piece, be it music or sounds related to the space seen in the picture. In order for the piece to have a harmonious and coherent appearance in the end, it seems essential to me to work, simultaneously, with each and every component of the project throughout the process.

Rapid prototypes

1. In the image you can see my reflection and, in another plane, the reflection of another person in the carriage. Simulate a dialogue with that person through improv.

2. Write down all the questions that I have about the picture and the project itself.

What’s in the picture? What does the picture mean for me? What can the picture mean for others? Is the picture a selfie? What's a selfie? What was I looking at? Why did I cover my face? Was I trying to pose for the picture? Was I looking at myself on my phone screen? Was I listening to music? If yes, to which one? Can I get this information? What other sounds were there on the train? Could I (still) hear them? Were people talking? Was the seat comfortable? What did I have inside of my backpack? Can I recreate it? What do I actually remember? What did I have in my lap? Why did I decide to take this photo? How was I feeling? What happened before? What happened after? Where was I going? From where was I coming from? Where was the train? Was the train moving or standing still? How’s the configuration of the space where I am? What’s that space? Is the space pleasing? What are the colors of this space? Does it even matter? Do I want to show the real colors of the picture? Is it important? Or is it just an aesthetic/visual choice? Is it possible to separate me from space? Can I talk about space without talking about me? Which are the limits of my understanding of space? Who else was in the space? Who is this person? Who is this woman? Is she a ghost? What is she doing? Where is she from? How old is she? Does she have kids? What does she do? Does she work? Is she unemployed? Is she retired? Is she on a holiday? Is she married? Is she single? Is she divorced? Is she a widow? What’s her biggest dream? How does she feel now? Where is she going? What does she see from her seat? Did she notice me? What does she think about me? Could I be her son? Could I be her grandson? What would we talk about? Would we talk in Spanish? Would we have interests in common? Would I like her? Would she like me? Is it possible for us to share space again (somewhere in the future)? If so, where, how and when? Would I tell her about this project? Will she know about this project? Would she like it? Will someone like it? Will I like it? Is this worth it? What is this about? Is it about me? Is it about my grandmother? Is it about loss? Is it about memories? Is this about void? Is it all and nothing at the same time? Do I have any clue? Will I - at some point? What am I actually doing?